The US didn't look great, but getting a win at Azteca is awesome. I thought the defense held up pretty well. The US had the same problem of not being able to hold possession well through midfield, but not having Bradley certainly hurts in that area.

largegarlic wrote:The US didn't look great, but getting a win at Azteca is awesome. I thought the defense held up pretty well. The US had the same problem of not being able to hold possession well through midfield, but not having Bradley certainly hurts in that area.

They didn't look good but they also threw out a pretty makeshift lineup. No Bradley, Dempsey, Bocanegra. I thought Geoff Cameron played pretty well in the center, and I still think Beckerman stinks.

I mean, it's really tough to get excited about the result given how it was achieved. If we were going to park the bus against good opponents (Mexico, Italy) and struggle against minnows (El Salvador), we should have just kept Bradley.

pfim wrote:I mean, it's really tough to get excited about the result given how it was achieved. If we were going to park the bus against good opponents (Mexico, Italy) and struggle against minnows (El Salvador), we should have just kept Bradley.

Where's the high pressure? Passing? Why is Klinsmann here?

My big problem with Bradley was his terrible tactics and line up decisions that would handicap the USA. But Klinsmann is nor really doing anything for me to support either

pfim wrote:I mean, it's really tough to get excited about the result given how it was achieved. If we were going to park the bus against good opponents (Mexico, Italy) and struggle against minnows (El Salvador), we should have just kept Bradley.

Where's the high pressure? Passing? Why is Klinsmann here?

Not going to be pressing when playing at Azteca with the elevation and air. If my club team played as ugly as the US team does maybe I would have an issue but with national teams their job is to grind out results. In short tournaments thats what its all about.

I agree that things haven't been that much different under Klinsmann, but there have been a couple games when you could see the US playing the style he preaches. I think the January friendly against Venezuela was a game example of this. The US pressed high and moved the ball quickly and cleanly that game, and I think was unlucky to only win 1-0.

The other game that comes to mind was the Brazil friendly in May (maybe the Scotland one too, but I didn't see that). I thought the US really took the game to Brazil in the 2nd, but Brazil's keeper was fantastic and Brazil burned the US on the break a couple times. I thought that game was really closer than 4-1.

I was thinking of the US as ideally becoming a poor man's Germany, playing the Klinsmann/Loew style. The US is, I think, finding a backline that is more athletic and more comfortable passing out of the back. Cameron, Johnson, Chandler (if he commits), Edu--all of these guys are comfortable on the ball (for defenders) and Johnson and Chandler can attack up the flanks--the poor's man Lahm.

I think the midfield is where the US is really lacking at the moment. They just don't have enough players who are good enough technically to keep possession under high pressure. Continuing the Germany analogy, Bradley is the poor man's Schweinsteiger, Jones is the poor man's Khedira, Donovan can be an effective flank player (like Mueller), but they don't have an Oezil to really give the attack any cutting edge, and they don't have another effective wide player. I think that's why Klinsmann keeps giving Shea chances.

DontToewsMeBro wrote:I agree they need more creativity and vision in the midfield. I think another option is hoping we develop some players like Josh Gatt who can bring more speed on the wings.

I think we need both. Shea obviously changed the dynamic of the game when he came on last night. It would be great if we had someone like that on the right side as well. Williams was a black hole there last night. He killed several promising attacks in the first half. It seems like Gatt is getting some hype, but I haven't seen him play. The other young wing player that is getting some hype on the internet is Joe Gyau at Hoffenheim.

Williams just isn't a right sided midfielder. I realize that he probably won't unseat one of the guys in the middle, but putting him out there on the right just has to stop. The team was much better with Zusi.